Hammer of the Gods indeed - 86%

Danzig has been off my radar for many years now. While never being a huge fanboy I did enjoy his earlier works but was put off for good by the polarizing ‘Blackacidevil’ and never really felt the urge to come back. 14 years on (and according to public opinion) 3 more shitty albums later, I return to the pastures of Evil Elvis to see whether there is redemption for the man that once scaled the heights of infamy only to fall into obscurity and YouTube one punch knock out embarrassment.

The first thing one notices from the outset of Deth Red Sabaoth is that thankfully the industrial experiment is over. No more stodgy half arsed Nine Inch Nails and B grade Ministry riffs its just plain old drums, bass and guitar. The second and most important thing is that Glenn has rediscovered his croon and the original elements of what made Danzig so memorable are back in the mix.

Its been mentioned that Glenn opted for a more analog approach this time round and the results in my opinion are killer. The big bass-heavy sound is huge and the majority of the songs are carried by simplistic yet monster riffs which are featured front and centre in the mix along with Danzig’s revitalized vocals.

When everything is stripped back to the bare bones like this you better hope that your material is up to scratch and thankfully the album delivers on the songs too. From the heaving opener ‘Hammer of the Gods’ we’re given exactly what we’ve been craving for since the early 90s: big hooks, big build up and catchy stick in yer head choruses.

After three in a row of rocking out the tempo drops and we’re greeted with the thumping dirge of ‘Black Candy’ and the soothing acoustic build up of lead single ‘On a Wicked Night’. Its in these slower moments that we can appreciate Glenn’s unique style and soulful voice as he carries both the songs effortlessly. Theres even a little nod to the past with ‘Deth Red Moon’ reminiscent in sound and style to a less frantic Misfits. In fact from start to finish this is solid, more than solid in fact damn fucking satisfying and enjoyable to tell the truth.

Overall I am sold on it. Without getting into arguments on where this stands in the grand scheme of things in Danzig’s career and whether this is all too little too late, I’m on board for giving this a definite horns up. Whether its nostalgia of simpler times, the recent death of Ronnie James Dio or just the bombardment of over produced technical crap that gets pushed my way, this album has rekindled my love of Heavy music lately. So whether this becomes a landmark album or classic or fades in the back of my collection in 3 months time doesn’t matter, at this very moment this album is front and centre in the stereo as guiltier pleasure as there ever has been, and for the time being I’m lovin every spin.